


That Beautiful Void

by statefarm_is_writing



Series: Valentine III [1]
Category: Original Work
Genre: M/M, Science Fiction, Short Story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-02
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:12:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26252455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/statefarm_is_writing/pseuds/statefarm_is_writing
Summary: A short story for my creative writing class :)Haley, a downtrodden secretary at the corporate space station of Valentine III, is about to have his life transformed.
Series: Valentine III [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1907164





	That Beautiful Void

Haley Atlas sat cradled in his living room's window nook, watching the shining oil slick sky pulse and flow like a sea of purple and navy. He could see for miles now that the station had finished its routine orbit of the nearest planet. The stars looked like an infinite array of shining white freckles, mirroring the brown ones on his skin. His own eyes shined back at the stars, letting his mind drift and wander. Life for Haley mostly consisted of cleaning up after backstabbers and suck-ups, also known as his coworkers, trying to climb the corporate ladder. Getting up early was just par for the course here, which could lead to some pretty grumpy mornings, but it was worth it to see the morning sky before he had to dive back into the shark tank that was Valentine III. The cheery ring of his communicator jolted him out of his thoughts.  
"Hello?"  
"Good morning, Atlas. You're needed in Sector 14b for my 5:00 AM meeting with the other department heads regarding the recent security breach. Please report immediately." The smooth voice of his manager, Ms. Luna, trickled through the Comm and washed him in panic.  
"5:00 AM? Are you sure?" He said, already sifting through his closet for a decent button-up. He should've done the laundry yesterday. Where was his tie? It was already 4:30, lateness creeping around the corner.  
"Is there a problem with that, Atlas?  
"No ma'am, sorry." He stammered. He heard the click of the call shutting off and fell back on his bed with a huff. He didn't even have time to shower. Haley dressed with fervor and ran out the door with his comm securely attached to his forearm, making his way towards the subway line that surrounded the perimeter of the station like the rings on the outskirts of a planet, which made it look like a tiny Saturn. The subway pod was nearly filled with people, and the squeeze put him smack in the middle of all of them. Rushing through the main hallway and into Sector 14a, his face was hot when he regarded his coworkers' confused stares. He found no sympathy in their blurred faces, not that he ever had before. Making friends in a place like this was just begging for trouble, no matter how lonely Haley got as he watched them laugh and whisper together at lunch or go out to drink after clocking out. Rejection had taught him his lesson, and even now as he panted, trying to make his running into a casual speed walk, their stares felt like more rejections left and right. As if he wasn't already embarrassed enough, he tripped as he turned the corner, falling right at the feet of a Silvan janitor.  
"Sorry! Sorry, I didn't mean to, uh, sorry I just, ugh, man that stings." A teal hand reached out to help him up, and he wobbled a bit as he got his footing back.  
"Don't worry about it." The janitor said. He stared at his nametag. 'Elliat.' It was rare to see Silvans on Valentine III, and the ones he had met all worked in higher management or as secretaries. Characterized by their rounded horns and four, pointed ears, the man in front of him had a pointed jaw and reddish-gold eyes, his cheeks dusted with a purple tint. The same teal palm waved in front of him slowly. "Um, sir?"  
"Sorry!" Haley yelped, turning around suddenly and striding down the next hallway. He scolded himself for staring as he tapped his comm to check the time. The bright blue screen projected: 5:12 AM in a holographic square in front of his face, and he shuddered. He was already late. There was no way to save face at this point, so he slowed to a walk and focused on his breathing, giving a sheepish grin to a woman across the hall. She gave him a strange look and kept on her way. Standing in front of a door labeled SECTOR 14B: CONFERENCE ROOM 5, Haley gulped a breath and straightened out his shirt. He pressed his ID card to the keypad and the nudged the door open.  
Sitting at a long, white table all the department heads, and a couple of middle managers from the security department, all turned towards him after being so rudely interrupted by the anxious secretary. Most of the DHs had their secretaries seated next to them with their comm notepads open and glowing softly. There was an empty seat next to Ms. Luna, a cold gleam in her eye as she waved him over. He ducked his head and scrambled over to her, pulling up his notepad and taking the holo-pen out of its holder. The (frankly pretty mundane) meeting went on as scheduled, and as everyone left, he noticed Elliat had made his way to the other end of the hall now, cursing under his breath and looking quite frustrated as he poked roughly at the keypad to some door. Haley went over to see what the trouble was.  
"Is everything alright?" He asked, standing to his side. Elliat didn't look at him, scowling at the glowing red RESTRICTED AREA labeling the door. He stood there a moment longer, and the next code he entered was met with a quiet beep. He twisted the door handle: still locked.  
"Oh, come on!" He whispered. Haley coughed and he glared at him. "Go away, company man. I got work to do."  
"Cleaning up the restricted area? Why didn't they give you a code?"  
Elliat sighed in defeat. "I dunno, you got one on you?" He shrugged, pulling out his ID. He read the number on the back and typed it into the keypad. The door handle was met with no resistance. "Hell yeah! Thanks, man, I owe you one." He said with a grin, disappearing into the dark crook. Haley smiled and turned to leave, taking a few steps before halting abruptly. He looked back at the open door and wrung his hands together, his brow furrowing in confusion. Wasn't that area restricted for a reason? He ran back to the door and peeked his head through, getting a face full of pure darkness. Finding no light switch, he bit the inside of his cheek in frustration. Stupid Silvan night vision.  
"Hey, wait up! Shoot, uh Elliat? I don't think you're supposed to be in here- "A warm hand clapped over his mouth. He panicked, trying to yank it off when a familiar voice made him relax his grip.  
"Are you trying to get us caught? Just follow me, or better yet, give me your ID card."  
"I don't know if this is a good idea," Haley whispered, muffled through his hand. Elliat dropped his hand to his side and sighed heavily, disappearing back into the dark. He tried to follow his footsteps as best as he could, noticing that he would stop every once in a while, to ruffle through some papers on the ground or open a drawer. It sounded like a very large office, or maybe an old lab. "So, what're we looking for?"  
"I," Elliat clarified, "am looking for evidence." Haley felt a pang of disappointment in his chest. So much for being part of something interesting. He heard him gasp and look through more papers, then a sudden dim light. As his eyes adjusted, he saw Elliat on the ground next to a large metal desk sifting through files with wide eyes. He whispered, "Here we go!" and pulled out a thin file labeled: ASE. He skimmed through the various charts and reports, then handed it over to Haley with a smug grin.  
As he read through the file, he lost his breath. Here was proof of excessive money laundering between the department heads, complete with a list of the employees involved, and nearly everyone in his department had their names scrawled next to their perfect plan. Even Ms. Luna had taken part in stealing thousands from the higher-ups.  
"What even…" he said in a hushed tone. He felt as if he was floating somewhere between a wonderful dream and a horrible nightmare. Elliat smiled lazily and sat back in a dusty office chair.  
"That's my ticket to the top. Yours too, if you're interested." He said, patting him on the back. "All we have to do is blackmail everyone on here and we're sitting pretty with the best of 'em for the rest of our lives! I've been trying to get out of this dump of a job for years, and when I heard about this whole mess, I just couldn't resist the opportunity."  
"This is insane," Haley muttered.  
"Isn't it?" Elliat laughed, "I got no friggin' clue why they wrote it down, but whatever." He leaned in with a smile, and Haley noticed that he had a slight gap in between his teeth. "You in?" he asked. As long as he could remember, Haley had spent his precious time and energy cleaning up the chaos that everyone around him left behind. Fetching coffee for a condescending boss and her lackeys sure built up some resentment here and there, but he didn't want to get her fired or anything. Sure, his coworkers ignored and outcast him, but didn't they deserve a second (or third, fourth, maybe fifth) chance? They probably had families back home and hopes and dreams. But in the same breath, what they were doing was costing innocent people hundreds of thousands, and for what? More luxury in their perfect lives?  
Haley thought of the small view from his living room. Space was so vast, and even as a child he had always wanted more of it, to be surrounded by it and swallowed up. If he stayed back and let Elliat go on without him, would it be enough to stare out through his tiny window, knowing how much more he had could've had? He'd heard rumors about the fancy restaurants up top with their glass walls, leading directly into that beautiful void. Once the possibility had planted itself in his head, the thought of giving it up for the sake of his rude, spiteful coworkers sparked panic within him. And Elliat? Well, he'd only know him for about an hour, but he was the closest thing to a friend that Haley ever had. Elliat's golden eyes staring back at him were lakes full of money. The corporate ladder had dropped right into Haley's hands, and he could finally see the top rung.  
"Okay, I'm in." He said. Elliat hopped up from his seat and hugged him, knocking the wind out of his lungs. His face warmed, and he smiled crookedly at the strange janitor.  
“I knew you’d say that!” He pulled away from him, hands on his shoulders, beaming with excitement. “Let’s get out of here before someone notices.” Haley nodded and copied the file to his Comm with a flourish, and he clicked off the desk light. Walking together in the dark, he felt his apprehension melt away into nothing. A large penthouse on the edge of the station with large, floor-to-ceiling windows and a queen-sized bed materialized in his mind and he smiled to himself, wave after wave of joy crashing over him. As they walked out into the light of the hallway, Haley and Elliat exchanged giddy glances before going their separate ways.  
“Atlas! Where have you been?” His boss’s heels clicked on the concrete floor when she grabbed him by the shoulder. Despite the initial anxiety, conditioned by years of mistreatment, he spun around and smiled at her. Her brows furrowed, and her anger made his confidence falter.  
“Hey! Uh, I was hoping we could talk about that, actually. I have some files you might wanna see. Y’know, privately, super important stuff. Yeah.” He stammered. She rolled her eyes and led him to her office, sitting at her expensive desk and gesturing for him to do the same. He stood up instead.  
“What file is this, exactly?”  
“The ASE.” He said, pulling it up on his Comm and holding in a laugh as her eyes grew as big as saucers. Haley Atlas made a mental note to buy his own starship.


End file.
